Process and content

PhD Program in Business Administration

The 240 ECTS credits of the PhD Program in Business Administration are divided into a course component (90 ECTS) and a dissertation component (150 ECTS). A specially designed course program, Stockholm-Uppsala Business Studies (SUBS), is run jointly with Uppsala University and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and offers four mandatory courses (30 ECTS) in the first semester of the program.

The remaining 60 ECTS are acquired in Specialized Courses, which are given at various departments and institutes at SSE, or other universities, and in many different forms. Which courses to take is jointly decided by the doctoral student and his/her Primary Supervisor.

The subject matters and forms of these courses vary from year to year in response to demands from doctoral students as well as to the changes in research interests.

You will be supervised by one SSE faculty member (primary supervisor) from the beginning of the program. After you have submitted a dissertation proposal in the second year, you will work with a supervision committee of 3-4 professors to complete your PhD dissertation. Research and conference travel is encouraged within the program.

Regardless if you seek a career inside or outside academia, you will meet people that will advance your career in ways you could never imagine

Erik Wikberg
PhD student
Business Administration

Stockholm School of Economics offers a truly life enriching experience in the PhD program. I cannot personally imagine a better job. The daily life of a PhD student often revolves around reading and writing, but it is very much up to the individual student to decide what, when and how to study. The work is demanding, varied, and flexible – but most of all, incredibly fun. It is sometimes hard, but always meaningful.

As a PhD student you can benefit from the Stockholm School of Economics’ unique closeness to the business community in Sweden. You can expect to interact with the most prominent people in the industry you are researching, as well as world-renowned professors in your theoretical field. Regardless if you seek a career inside or outside academia, you will meet people that will advance your career in ways you could never imagine.

The PhD program is often described as an intellectual journey. To me it has also been a journey in the most obvious and literal sense. So far my research has brought me to Beijing, Jerusalem, London, New York, Paris, Tokyo and many more places. Such trips develop your competence and build your international network. However, the most exciting part of the program is actually the regular day-to-day work at the office. That is exactly how rewarding the PhD program is.

Program Process

Application (February) and Admission (May) Start of program around September 1 (SSE Primary Supervisor and Department/Institute) Mandatory fall semester SUBS (30 ECTS) Elective courses over two years (60 ECTS), and dissertation work in parallel Dissertation proposal after two full years (Supervision Committee of 3-4 professors appointed) Continued dissertation work (total of 150 ECTS) dissertation is either a monograph, or consolidated (a collection of 3-5 publishable articles and summary) Internal defence seminar Acceptance by your Head of Department and the Faculty and Program Board Dissertation printing, Assessment Committee of three professors, Faculty opponent appointed Public defence of dissertation Award ceremony (Diploma, hat and ring)